


Setting Sail, Coming Home

by r3dmi1es



Category: Fruits Basket
Genre: Crying, Cute Couples, F/M, Momiji fucks shit up, No actual sex, Post canon, Slow Burn, more details in the notes its not that bad, non consensual voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-18
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-10-21 08:21:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20690426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/r3dmi1es/pseuds/r3dmi1es
Summary: After graduation, Momiji decides to reunite with his sister and claim his inheritance in his father's business. Having the beautiful Toudou Kimi as his secretary makes things a little harder (pun intended).





	1. Mother, I'm Here

"...So, class of 2003, congratulations: we are now graduates!" The last few words of Sakuragi's graduation speech is cut off by the slow build of a roar of cheers and applause, as Kaibara's newest graduating class jumps collectively to their feet.

Momiji tugs Hatsuharu up as he stands, excited: "We're graduates, Haru, graduates!"

Haru grins lazily up at Momiji (and wow, that's still weird, being taller than him). "Maybe you'll finally get a girlfriend now."

Momiji pouts and sticks his tongue out at him. _ "Mean, _ Haru! Come on, let's go find the others!" The two of them push through the crowd, brushing off people bustling around to congratulate them, talk to them, anything to interact with the still-mystical Sohmas; Momiji's glad he doesn't have to deal with the curse in crowds like this anymore.

"Ah," Haru says, stopping suddenly, pointing through the giant crowd. "Machi."

Momiji follows his gaze to see their classmate/Yuki's girlfriend struggling to get out of the oblivious crowd, and waves excitedly. "Kuragi-san! Over here!"

"Thank you," Machi says quietly when they manage to meet up with her, the two of them serving as a shield from the more invasive parts of the crowd.

Haru smiles at her, before unceremoniously picking her up and turning to Momiji. "Do you see any of the other Sohmas?" (Machi squeaks and blushes, but doesn't struggle much.)

Momiji peers over the heads of the crowd. "Ehh, I haven't seen anyone--Ah! Hatori!"

It takes a minute, but eventually they end up in a more spacious area with Hatori, Shigure, Yuki, Rin, Kakeru, and Tohru.

"Haru, please put Machi down," Yuki says, a vein tensing in his forehead. Haru agrees amiably, and goes over to hug Yuki instead. Rin looks annoyed, but not surprised; Machi seems a little starstruck.

Kakeru glances rapidly between Haru and Momiji. "Yuki, tell me again why _ all _of your relatives are so hot?"

"Ah--congratulations, Momiji-kun, Hatsuharu-kun, Kuragi-san!" Tohru says excitedly, and Momiji grins.

"Thank you, Tohru! Kyo was too boring to come today?"

"He said it was too much of a hassle," Shigure explains, throwing an arm around Tohru's shoulders. "So, I'm her date today!" He winks, and Tohru's eyes blow wide as she blush-panics, in that particular way she does. Hatori snaps a picture.

"I'm going to use this to blackmail you," Hatori tells Shigure matter-of-factly. "Momiji, congratulations."

Momiji smiles brightly and throws his arms around Hatori, still marveling that he can see over the other man's head as he does; Hatori hugs him back awkwardly. "Thank you," Momiji murmurs into Hatori's ear, and he can tell from how Hatori's arms tighten around him that he heard all the unspoken reasons behind it. _ Thank you for taking care of me. Thank you for taking responsibility when my family couldn't and wouldn't. Thank you for being my father when my parents left me behind. _

"Of course," Hatori says back, just as quietly, and when they pull apart his eyes are glistening a bit.

  
-  


"What are you all planning to do after this?" Hatori asks, later, as the group of them eat together.

Machi glances at Yuki and Kakeru. "I'm going to join them at university."

Kakeru leans in. "Yeah, about that, I was looking around for apartments in the area--"

"She already has a place to stay," Yuki interrupts, smiling, and Machi blushes bright red. Kakeru gapes.

_ "Yun-yun--!" _

"I think I'll just freeload off of Rin for a while," Haru interrupts, looking to some far off point on the ceiling.

"Get a fucking job," Rin says without looking up from her food.

"Momiji-kun? You wanted to be a violinist a few years ago, right?" Tohru asks, and Momiji smiles warmly at her.

"Yeah! I think I'll take my time with that, though, there's something else I want to do first."

"Oh my, how cryptic," Shigure says, fanning himself.

Hatori stares at Momiji. "What are you planning?" he asks, carefully.

Momiji ducks his head and smiles. "Well. I was thinking that I'd try to take over my dad's business and get my sister back."

The idle conversation at the table--Kakeru arguing with Yuki and Machi, Haru trying to convince Rin that she could support both of them easily--abruptly stops, and everyone turns to stare at Momiji. There's a long moment of tense silence.

Finally, Rin smiles. "Well, it's about damn time." Haru nods in agreement.

Shigure turns to Hatori with mock fear in his eyes. "Haa-san," he says seriously, "Why did all the kids grow up to be so scary?"

"I don't know the details," Machi says hesitantly, "but good luck, Momiji-san." Kakeru nods vehemently, pointing at her to show who he agrees with.

"Be careful, Momiji-kun," Tohru says, reaching out to grab his hand--and _ damn, _ he has to remind himself that she's Kyo's, not his. "But, I'm happy for you." She smiles that loving Tohru smile, the one that tugs at everyone's heartstrings, and Momiji smiles back helplessly.

"Thanks, Tohru," he manages, blinking back soft tears.

"Yeah," Hatori echoes, looking everywhere but at Momiji. "Good luck."

  
-  


Momiji scrolls through his texts with his father for the third time in the last minute, rereading the confirmation of where his sister was.

**Momo has her first violin lesson today. Make sure you're nowhere near the studio.**

He smiles bitterly at the wording and leans carefully against a low, brick wall across from the violin studio, watching the double doors like a hawk, checking the time every couple of seconds. A few minutes after three, the doors open and several young students, of many ages--some of whom he recognizes from the old days--amble out together, giggling and chattering and lugging their cumbersome instruments back home. And there--

"Momo!" he calls out, and she looks up and sees him, disbelieving, her violin case clenched tightly in her fist. He waves, smiling, and his heart leaps into his throat when her lip quivers and she starts towards him, carefully watching for cars as she crosses the street, careful steps taken so that his illusion isn't shattered.

_ "Momo has become interested in you," _ his father's voice echoes in his head. _ "She--she wants you to be her big brother!" _ Tohru cries for him, and he knew--he knew she'd come to him, if only he asked, but it still brings tears to his eyes to see her standing just in front of him, looking up in adoration.

"Momiji-kun?" she says softly, and he squats down and holds out a hand.

"Yeah," he says. "I want to tell you something. Can you keep a secret, for a little while?"

She nods, enthusiastic, and so he tells her. He weaves the story of God and the zodiac animals, and the special Sohmas who had taken up their curse, and how the curse had been broken; he tells the story of a mother, unable to bear looking at her son who turned into a rabbit, who chose to forget what she knew of him; he tells the story of a father, who chose the perfect ideal of a family over his own son; and he tells the story of the son, who just wanted a happy family to live with. "I'm--I'm your brother, Momo," he says quietly. "Really. And I want to be a part of your life, now. Do you believe me?"

Her eyes well up with tears. "Of course," she cries out, and throws her arms around his neck. "I always hoped you would be," she whispers into his ear, and he's not sure he was supposed to hear but he's very, very glad he did.

"You can't tell _ Papa _ or _ Mutti _ that you know," he tells her eventually. "I have a plan, but you have to keep quiet, okay?"

She nods, determined. Then, she frowns. "I don't think Mama would believe me, anyway."

He smiles sadly. "I don't think she'll believe me, either. So, I'll have to tell her a story she _ will _ believe, okay?"

"Okay."

He holds her hand, tight. "Once I talk to them, _ Papa _ and _ Mutti _ might be very, very angry, with me and with each other. If it ever gets too scary, just call me, okay? I'll come get you, I promise I can keep you safe."

"Okay, Momiji-nii," she says, squeezing his hand back.

  
-  


**We are here,** Momo's text reads, and Momiji takes a steeling breath and walks into the restaurant. _ It's a nice place, _ he thinks. _ None of us are going to want to come back here. _

His family--_ Papa, Mutti, _ and Momo--are seated around a small table. They have drinks, but no food; they've only just arrived. He approaches the table calmly, politely, and so _ Papa's _face doesn't even twist up in shock and horror until Momiji is pulling up a chair to sit next to Momo, his hands folding in front of him.

_ "Hallo, Mutti und Papa," _ Momiji says in German, with a sad smile.

"Momiji," _ Papa _ hisses at him angrily. "What are you doing here?!"

"I'm taking back what should have been mine a long time ago," Momiji says. "Hello, Momo!"

"Momiji-nii!" she says happily, smiling.

"I'm sorry, I think she's confused," _ Mutti _ says, frowning at her daughter. "Actually, I am too. Why are you here, Momiji-kun?"

_ "Mutti," _ he says, _ "Papa _ and I have been lying to you. I'm your son, not some random Sohma kid running around at the estate."

Her face freezes. "What?"

"Boy, you better stop this right now or--"

"Or what, _ Papa? _ I'm an adult now. You can't even threaten me with Akito, she's already agreed to continue supporting me, even if you don't."

"Excuse me, what the _ hell _ is going on?" _ Mutti _ demands, though she does look guiltily at Momo when she says it.

"I'm your son," Momiji repeats patiently. "Hatori made you forget, because you hated me. But I'm not cursed anymore, so there's nothing stopping me from telling you."

_ "I'm _ stopping you!" _ Papa _ all-but screams. "How _ dare _ you ruin this family! We agreed that you wouldn't try anything like this, that you would stay out of their lives!"

Momo flinches. "Papa, please don't yell at Momiji-nii--"

"And when the hell did you tell _ her _ about all this?!" _ Papa _ demands, gesturing wildly at Momo. Momiji puts a protective arm in front of his sister, and she clings to it.

"Wait--you aren't saying this is _ true, _ are you?" _ Mutti _ asks incredulously. _ "Are you?!" _ she demands, hysterical, when he can only look at her.

"I--This is what _ you _ wanted, you said you couldn't stand to live with him, to look at him--"

"How am I supposed to believe _ that? _ There's nothing _ wrong _ with him, he's a perfectly normal boy--"

"He is_ now, _ yes, but when he was born, when he was growing up--"

"It doesn't matter," Momiji interrupts. "I don't need either of you to be my parents, not anymore. I just want two things."

"Oh, _ really," Papa _ spits at him. "And what might _ that _ be?"

"I want my little sister back," Momiji says calmly, "And I want my birthright. I want to be the heir of your company."

He glares. "Why the hell would I do that?"

"If this is true, than you owe it to him," _ Mutti _ cuts in sharply. "You've been cutting him out of our lives for so long. I think he deserves it, don't you?"

"It wasn't _me,_ _you_ were the one who insisted--"

"I don't believe that for a _ second _\--"

"You were, actually, _ Mutti," _ Momiji says quietly. "You couldn't stand the thought that you'd given birth to as horrible of a creature as me. You said you would rather _ die _ than live knowing that you were my mother, so Hatori made you forget. I had to _ live _ with that, _ Mutti, _ my whole _ life _ I had to live with that, so please, take responsibility for it."

_ Mutti _ looks scared, disbelieving, guilty. She's at a loss for words for a moment. "I..." She looks away, finally. "I don't know why I would do that," she says quietly. "But..." she turns to _ Papa. _ "Give him whatever he wants. Because, even if _ you _ don't think you owe it to him, apparently _ I _ do."

_ Papa _ grits his teeth. "Fine. Anything _ else _ you want to ruin for us?"

Momiji turns to Momo. "Sorry, Momo. Are you okay? Do you want to go back with me?"

She shakes her head. "I'm okay. Mama is sad, and I can make her happy again."

Momiji's heart breaks, for a moment, for never having a chance to say those words and believe them, but he holds his smile in place. "I hope so. Call me if you need me, okay?" She nods in agreement, and Momiji turns back to _ Papa. _ "I'll be at the building Monday morning."

"Get out," _ Papa _ growls, and Momiji leaves.

Once outside, he collapses, dropping to his knees on the city streets just outside the restaurant. Sweat drips down his brow; his heart races at approximately a million miles an hour; he thinks he might throw up. _ But, _ he thinks proudly, _ I did it. _

  
-  


At 9:00 am sharp the following Monday, Momiji walks through the front door of his family's building for the first time. No more sneaking in through side doors, no more accompanying Tohru through the maintenance entrance, no more hiding from the family who owns it. (His fingers shake.)

However, he doesn't _ quite _ know what he's supposed to do. What even _ is _ international business, anyway?

A stressed-looking secretary spots him and storms over to greet him. "Are you, by chance, Sohma Momiji-san? Your father told me to direct you to your office," he says when Momiji nods, sounding annoyed. "Right this way, please."

Momiji follows him, amused. "Hey, weren't you the valedictorian of our class? Sakuragi Naohito?"

Sakuragi sighs. "Yes. _ Some _ of us had to _ work _ for a position here, unlike you. Sir."

Momiji shrugs. "I liked your speech. Have you been working here long?"

"I was interning throughout high school. _ Technically _ I only started working full time last week, but I can assure you that I have far more experience than you possibly could. Here's where you will be working, your personal secretary will fill you in." Sakuragi pushes open a door to reveal a quaint little office, complete with officey things, like a landline telephone and a crappy printer. There's an incredibly beautiful woman sitting on one of the desks applying lipstick; she jumps when the door opens.

"Oh, hey Nao! Who's _ this?" _ The woman hops off of the desk to saunter towards Momiji, smiling up at him once she's close (too close, almost).

"Sohma Momiji," Momiji says, sticking a hand out to shake.

"He's the chairman's son, he doesn't have any idea what he's doing," Sakuragi explains. "You're perfect for each other. Try to get _ some _ work done today, okay?"

"No promises!" she says, waving as Sakuragi leaves. He flips her off, and she laughs. "I'm Toudou Kimi, but you can just call me Kimi!" Kimi ignores Momiji's hand in favour of spinning around to return to her desk.

Momiji shifts his weight, slightly uncomfortable. "Is there anything for me to do? Sorry, I don't actually know how to do...whatever we do here." Kimi pulls out her phone and starts scrolling through it wordlessly, looking bored, and Momiji feels a steady, righteous anger swell in his chest. "You know, even if _ you _ don't want to do anything--"

"Here," she says suddenly, holding her phone up to his face. (It's impossible for his eyes to focus on the tiny screen; he thinks he might need to hold her hand steady if he's supposed to read whatever's written there.) "Your daddy emailed me this morning! All I'm supposed to do is 'make sure you're presentable enough for proper business,' so like, I'm supposed to teach you business etiquette and stuff. But you're hot, rich, and powerful, so nobody will actually care if you don't know anything! So we can just hang out."

Momiji's brow furrows. "There's no actual _ work _ to do?"

"Nope!" Kimi says cheerfully. "We get paid to sit around and do nothing all day, isn't that great?"

Momiji leans back against his desk, crossing his arms as Kimi returns to her phone. "I guess..."

  
-  


A few hours later, they're perched on their respective desks, giggling and eating candy out of Momiji's bag. "Oh my God, so you're like, actually Yun-Yun's cousin?" Kimi asks enthusiastically. "That's so cool!"

"Well, basically, yeah. We aren't closely related at all, but we were brought up as close family, sort of. Yuki was kept apart from us when we were younger, though, 'cause he was the golden child, essentially." Momiji unwraps another lollipop and sticks it in his mouth.

"No wonder he always seemed so delicate, Jesus."

"I think he hated it, honestly. He was much happier with the student council."

"Oh, really? I _ knew _ he loved us!"

"Sakuragi was on the council too, right?"

"Yeah, he was, uptight little bastard. Just call him Nao, it'll drive him crazy, and that's more fun!"

Momiji snorts. "Yeah, that does sound fun."

Kimi straightens up, suddenly, with an idea. "We should go drinking tonight! We'll take Nao with us, he's always hilarious drunk!"

Momiji doesn't really drink, but... He smiles at this bright, enthusiastic, beautiful girl, thinking she might just take his life on a whirlwind spin. "Sure, sounds like fun!"

When they approach Nao with the idea at the end of the day, however, he is less than pleased. "You want to go _ drinking? _ It's a Monday night, Kimi!"

"Okay, that's fine, we'll just go ourselves," Kimi agrees easily, latching onto Momiji's arm and tugging him towards the door. "Come on, let's get going before the bars fill up!"

A pained look crosses Nao's face as Momiji starts to follow her, laughing. "Damn it, Kimi!" Nao yells, grabbing a bag and jogging to catch up with them. _ "We're _the ones who will get in trouble if he comes in hungover tomorrow!"

Kimi pouts at him. "Boo, Nao, I said don't come! It's a date now, you're uninvited!"

Momiji raises an eyebrow. "Are you really going to third wheel, Nao?"

Nao turns bright red, but staunchly keeps up with them. "You're the ones who invited me in the first place," he grumbles angrily. "Troublesome people, the both of you."

"Hey, it's a date, so you can buy all of Kimi's drinks, okay?" Kimi says quickly, pressing her chest against Momiji's arm and blinking up into his eyes sinfully.

"...Not worth it, I take it back, not a date anymore," Momiji manages, but it takes effort.

She looks disappointed, but she winks when she pulls away. "Your loss."

  
-  


"So," Momiji laughs eventually, noting the pile of soda glasses between himself and Kimi, across the table. "I take it you don't actually drink much alcohol?"

"You don't either," she says with a sniff. "No fun at all!"

Momiji shrugs. "Never really saw the appeal. I prefer sugary drinks anyway. Why'd you invite us out for drinks if you don't drink yourself?"

"Drunk guys buy more things for her," Nao groans from where his head is flopped onto the table. "I should know." Kimi slaps the back of his head, and Momiji winces.

"Don't say such unnecessary things, Nao!"

"Sounds like a good business tactic," Momiji jokes, twirling the ice in his soda glass with a straw. "You should be running the company, not me."

Kimi looks like she might respond to that, but Nao lifts his head slowly, with a Presence. "Yes, well, personal qualifications don't seem to matter much when the Sohma family is involved," he says bitterly, sticking out a finger to jab at Momiji's chest. "You and... Sohma Yuki! Always taking over things, taking positions of power like they're passed out like candy, you know?"

Momiji frowns; that hit a little closer to home than he'd like. "Nao--"

Nao looks puzzled. "Why does my forehead feel funny?"

Kimi looks amused. "Because you just had it on the table for an hour."

Nao considers this for a long moment. "Okay," he agrees finally, and flops back forward.

Momiji stares for a moment, then grins. "It seems Nao _ is _ the type to drink." Kimi snorts.

"Can I get you guys anything else?" Their server approaches, her notepad at the ready.

"Just the check, I think," Momiji says after a surreptitious glance at the table. "Put it all on one."

"Sure thing," she says, bouncing away. Kimi tilts her head.

"One check?"

"Sure," Momiji shrugs, "I don't think Nao remembers what money is right now."

"I'm not _ that _ drunk, guys," Nao complains, lifting his head again. He glares at nothing in particular. "Okay, nope, room's still spinning," he announces and drops his head back down with a soft _ clunk. _

"Okay, well, _ I'm _ not drunk," Kimi argues, though she looks unsure. Probably wondering why she's arguing.

Momiji grins an easy, lopsided grin. "We'll just say I'm a gentleman, then."

"Easy money, more like," she claims, but there's a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

"We can call it that, sure."

  
-  


_ Two weeks later. _

They're both laughing, Momiji shaking his head and Kimi grinning like a fool. "You," Momiji says, trying for a disapproving tone but unable to keep the smile off his face, "Have the _ biggest ego _ of _ anyone _ I've ever met. And keep in mind that Sohma Shigure is my cousin."

She sticks her tongue out, unabashed. "Did I ever tell you the story of how I turned out this way?" He shakes his head, and she grins. "Okay, so there were these girls--"

A knock on the door cuts her off, and they both freeze; the lingering doubt that they were supposed to be doing real work all along creeping back in to set the heavy weight of guilt on their chests. (It could be Nao, but he usually only comes around at sanctioned break times.)

"Come in," Momiji says nervously, and the door creaks open-- "Oh, it's just you, Hatori!" Momiji says, relieved, hopping off his desk.

Hatori looks mildly offended at that, but instead, he says, "So, this is where you work these days?"

"Yep! Dad gave me my own office! Oh, this is... technically my secretary, right? Toudou Kimi, she was in the student council with Yuki a few years ago."

Kimi waves, and Hatori smiles back awkwardly. "Nice to meet you... Momiji, can we speak privately for a moment?"

"Um, sure?" Confused, Momiji follows Hatori out in the hall to a more secluded place to talk. "What's up, Hatori?"

"Are you doing alright?" Hatori asks gruffly, looking slightly embarrassed. "With your family, and all?"

Momiji stares for a long moment. _ Oh, _ he realizes, _ Hatori was worried about me. _ The thought warms his chest and makes him smile. "I'm okay," he says finally. "Momo knows she's my sister now, and she's happy about it. We keep in touch. _ Mutti _ and _ Papa _..." He shrugs helplessly, and Hatori's jaw tightened.

"Did either of them hurt you? Or your sister?"

"No! No, they definitely didn't react as poorly as I thought they might. Actually, _ Mutti _ was the one to tell _ Papa _ to give me this job. I don't think she understands, fully, but she seems more angry at _ Papa _ than anything."

Hatori looks relieved. "Good, that's--good." There's an edge of sadness in his tone, one that gives Momiji pause, that he can't quite place--

"Hatori, to be honest I only care about their reaction as far as it affects Momo," Momiji says suddenly.

"They're your parents, of course you care," Hatori worries, but Momiji is shaking his head.

"They gave up on me, Hatori. I've always thought of _ you _ as my real dad."

Hatori's eyes go wide, and he puts a hand to his mouth. He takes a breath like he's going to say something, but he can't seem to get any words out. Tears slip down his cheeks, and he seems to give in, slumping his shoulders, leaning in when Momiji wraps his arms around the man who raised him. "Thank you," Hatori finally manages to say against Momiji's shoulder.

  
-  


_ "Hey, do you want to come visit some of the Sohmas with me? Yuki and Machi will be there, you know them." _   


_ "Oh, sure! Hey Nao, do you wanna come?" _

_ "Drop dead." _

And so, Momiji and Kimi head over together to spend the weekend at Shigure's old house with Yuki, Machi, Kyo, and Tohru. Tohru is outside waiting for them when they arrive, and she waves as soon as she sees them on the path. "Hello, Momiji-kun!"

"Hey, Tohru!" Momiji trills, waving back just as enthusiastically, and for a moment it's like they're in high school again, the days when Tohru would greet him every day, where his most precious confidante was at his side, his partner in crime, the sweetest person he'd ever met in his life--

But as soon as the thought arrives, it leaves, as Kyo steps outside and casually drops an elbow on Tohru's head, peering down at them. Momiji leans a little closer to Kimi; the back of his hand brushes hers, and she takes it, unexpectedly. He glances at her, and she smiles.

"I can smell jealousy a mile away," she whispers, and he rolls his eyes as they reach the house.

"Who's this?" Kyo asks gruffly, and Tohru shoots him a sharp look (quick enough that most would have missed it, though).

"Ah, this is Toudou Kimi-san, she was on the student council with Yuki-kun!" Tohru says pleasantly.

Kyo frowns at her, confused. "I thought she was here already, why's she with Momiji?"

"I'm Momiji's secretary now," Kimi says with a flirtatious smile, abandoning Momiji's hand to bounce up to Kyo and playfully tug at the hem of his shirt. Kyo stares at her like she's grown another head.

"Yuki's girlfriend is Momiji's secretary? I thought they went to the same college?"

"Kimi is a _ different _ friend from the student council, idiot cat," Yuki drawls from the doorway. "Machi, whom you've met several times, is over here."

Kyo turns, sees Machi standing under Yuki's arm, and puts a hand to his head in frustration. "I give up. Tohru, I'm gonna go upstairs for a little while."

As soon as he leaves, Momiji lets go of the laugh he'd been holding in. "Kyo still has trouble with new people?"

Tohru seems to deflate a little bit. "I love Kyo," she still says, though, determined. "He's just sometimes a little too...Kyo."

Something flashes in Kimi's eyes, and she throws an arm around Tohru. "Listen, sister, you have _ got _ to start controlling your man better. Let me give you some tips," she says, leading Tohru inside. "Machi, you come too, it's about time we had a talk about the way you're letting Yun-Yun get away with so much," she adds, grabbing a frightened Machi by the wrist.

Momiji and Yuki exchange a half-horrified, half-amused look. "That's worrying, right?" Yuki says.

Momiji grins a shit-eating grin. "More for you and Kyo than me, I think."

Yuki grins angrily, yanking on Momiji's collar to rub his head aggressively. "And to think we all used to think you were this sweet little kid," he says grumpily as Momiji wails in laughter. "When did you get to be such a smartass?"

Momiji breaks free and grins, ruffling his hair back into place. "I've always been a smartass," he says with a wink, "I just used to care about hiding it."

Yuki sighs. "That sounds about right, honestly."

  
-  


"Checkmate," Yuki says coolly, moving his queen past Momiji's defenses, and Momiji groans and flops back against the couch.

"So mean, Yuki! Go easier on me, I don't know how to play very well!"

"Learn how to play chess," Yuki counters with a small, self-satisfied smile.

Kyo appears in the hall, looking bleary-eyed, and Momiji takes the opportunity to whine. "Kyo~! Yuki's too good at chess, he never lets me win!"

Kyo's nose scrunches up. "So what? Get better at it, then."

"Maybe if you took your own advice you'd be able to beat me sometimes, too," Yuki comments idly, picking up a book.

Kyo stomps angrily into an offensive stance. "Asshole, I'll beat you right now! There's no more curse holding me back--"

Yuki jumps up and shoves a hand against Kyo's mouth. "Not everyone here knows," he hisses.

"Curse? What curse?" Kimi says from the kitchen doorway, and Momiji turns to see her and... _ Holy shit. _

Kimi has somehow gotten Tohru into a _ much _ more revealing outfit than she would otherwise wear: a low-necked crop top and a mini skirt, barely covered by the apron she wore when cooking. Kimi herself has her arms draped over Tohru's shoulders intimately, her head perched on top of Tohru's, and her arms wrapped _ just so _ to draw attention to Tohru's chest...

Momiji feels his pants start to feel a bit tight, and he crosses his legs and looks away, forcing himself to look at Kyo and Yuki instead. _ Heh, Kyo looks like he's gonna have a heart attack. _

Yuki gives the two girls a cursory glance and sighs. "Kimi, stop corrupting the idiots, they're troublesome enough as it is."

Kimi pouts. "But Machi and Tohru look so cute now! Machi, come out here, I wanna show you off!" Momiji absolutely refuses to glance over at the girls again, but Machi must come out, because Yuki's face goes through some interesting expression changes and about five different colors.

"Get off of Tohru!" Kyo says, seeming to have finally processed enough to react; he grabs Tohru's wrist and shields her with himself, growling, his face bright red, and _ Oh, hey, cool, I can look over there again! Wow, Machi's cute in that outfit, no wonder Yuki's freaking out. _

Kimi sticks her tongue out at the two of them. "No fun," she complains, and saunters over to sit by Momiji--or, _ on _ Momiji, apparently, shit, he's not quite prepared for that. Kimi smirks at him over her shoulder, but thankfully-- _ thankfully _\--doesn't feel the need to say anything.

"God, you're all assholes," Kyo grumbles. "Come on, Tohru, I'll help you make dinner." He drags Tohru back in the kitchen, presumably to keep her out of sight from "lecherous" eyes.

Yuki has, at some point, moved to stand extremely close to Machi, and when Kyo and Tohru brush past them he straightens and clears his throat, his hand wrapping around her wrist. "We're gonna," he says, pulling Machi towards the stairs and gesturing vaguely, "Yeah." He doesn't bother to finish, and soon they're out of sight.

Kimi turns and smirks at Momiji. "And then there were two. You seem excited."

Momiji blushes bright red and groans, shoving his head against her shoulder. "You are an evil, evil woman," he says seriously. "You're a seductress, a temptress, a succubus, I agree with Kyo, I'm kicking you out."

"Aw, you don't mean that," Kimi laughs. "Want me to take care of it for you?"

Momiji jerks his head up to stare at her incredulously. _ "Evil _ woman, stop putting ideas in my head."

"Hey, is this a couple's get-together?" Kimi asks suddenly.

Momiji shrugs. "It's a couple's get-together that I was also invited to for some reason. I asked you to come so I wouldn't be third wheeling. Or, fifth wheeling, in this case." He knows why she's asking. They haven't talked about it, but they both feel it: the underlying attraction, the flirting, the subconscious behaviour that makes their friends pair them together, that makes Nao gag when the three of them spend time together. Combined with this trip... there's no denying, it feels like a relationship thing, or at least a friends with benefits thing.

However, all she says is, "Hmm, okay," and the conversation is over. "Hey, did you know Kyo and Tohru haven't even fucked yet?"

Momiji flops his head back against the couch. "Didn't know, didn't need to know, thanks."

"Tohru's getting impatient about it too," she barrels on as if he hadn't said anything. "She tried to hide it, but I could tell. That's why she agreed to wear that outfit, she wants to seduce Kyo."

"Yep, _ so much fun _ hearing these things about my cousin and the girl I used to be in love with," Momiji complains.

"Oh, really? That explains a lot, I'll use that against you later. Anyway, I'm supposed to share a room with her, but if all goes well, I'm gonna bunk with you, 'kay?"

"Oh God, please don't, if they're fucking tonight I really, really don't wanna know."

"Well, Kyo's supposed to share a room with you, so you'll know anyway! Come on, it'll be fun, we can be sleepover buddies! Besides, it's not gonna be worse than Yuki and Machi right now."

"What do you mean?"

Kimi gives him a look. "They're currently fucking, didn't you realize?"

"...I hate you."

  
-  


Later that night, Momiji steps outside on his own and sits on the porch, looking at the stars, thinking quietly. The whole house is nostalgic, bittersweet; he remembers days of barbeques and family and friends every weekend, times when this house was never empty, never quiet like his own. He remembers feeling jealous of Yuki and Kyo, getting to live together here with Tohru and Shigure, and wishing he had the courage to ask Akito if he could leave the main house. He remembers bittersweet family dinners here, wondering if he could have had dinners like those with his own parents, if he hadn't been cursed.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Kimi stands in the door, merely a silhouette against the light from the house; he smiles and gestures for her to sit by him.

"Old memories," he says, simply. "I used to spend a lot of time here."

"Family is really important to you, isn't it," she says. It's not really a question.

He shrugs and answers anyway. "In some ways. Some people more than others, and some in vastly different ways to others." He doesn't think he ever wants to interact with Akito more than he has to again; too much pain, too much change, too much fear that things will somehow revert back to the way they were if he spends too much time around her.

"But," she says, oddly insistent, "The structure as a whole, the idea of it--you like that."

"Well, yeah. I didn't really have it, as a kid."

"Really?"

"My mom doesn't know I'm her kid, and my dad worked really hard to keep it that way. Or, well, the secret's out now, but I don't know if she actually believes it yet."

"How is that possible? Wouldn't she remember having you?"

_ Oh, right, _ Momiji remembers, _ That's not exactly normal. _ "She doesn't remember. You wouldn't believe me if I told you how, or why, but she doesn't remember."

Kimi looks like she wants to know more, but she seems to see something in his face that stops her from pursuing the subject. "That sucks," she says instead.

"It is what it is," he says mildly. "Times like these, hanging out with everyone, are nice, though."

She's quiet for a while after that, so Momiji goes back to looking at the stars, picking out half-remembered constellations and trying to remember their names. Ursa Major, of course, and there's Ursa Minor... Those three over there might be Orion's belt...

Kimi drops her head on his shoulder, and suddenly all thoughts of constellations are gone. She sighs, softly, and out of the corner of his eye he can see her, framed against the landscape he loves so dearly, and she looks like she belongs, like the trees and moonlight were designed to compliment her appearance. Stars shine in her dark eyes, reflecting anything and everything they come across; she breathes, and the whole forest seems to breathe with her. She's gorgeous--and it's not like Momiji didn't know that before, it was the first thing he noticed about her, but it's the first time she's felt not only gorgeous, but like home. Like she's always belonged here, just like him.

She glances up and catches his eye. "Tohru told me I couldn't stay in her room tonight," she says, grinning slightly, and Momiji sighs.

"Why do you _ always," _ he says, lifting a hand to brush a fallen strand of hair back behind her ear, "have to ruin the moment?"

(He smiles back, though.)

  
-  


_ One week later. _

"So," Momiji says as they step out of the diner, "Should I call you a cab? Walk you home?"

"Hmm," Kimi says, pretending to think about it. "I don't think I really want to go home tonight."

"Oh, really?" he says, holding an arm up for her to duck under. "What were your plans, then?"

"I thought I might pick a guy off the street to take me back to his place," she says with a wink.

He tightens his grip around her shoulders. "Nope, denied, can't have you doing that," he teases. "All the guys on the streets this late are creeps."

"Even you?"

He swallows, but doesn't break eye contact, can't pull away from the irresistible draw of her deep, dark eyes. _ "Especially _ me."

Her eyes flash with satisfaction, with _ want, _ and suddenly she's kissing him, passionately, fervently, and he's kissing back like he was born to do it. It's like a dance, a push and pull, like oscillating magnets, undeniably attracted but unable to be too close together; it's nothing at all like he'd imagined kissing Tohru would have been like. It's not a homecoming, it's electric, charged, kinetic. He wants to move, to touch her, to pick her up and dance in the streets with her in his arms; he wants to hold her close, and knows that she'll never let him, but that's _ fine, _ that's _ perfect. _ He's never had more fun.

They call a cab, stumble back into his apartment, and then she's sprawled out on his bed, her mouth hanging open deliberately, everything about her pose designed to draw him in, pull him closer; falling over her is a release, the only option left. He kisses her jaw, her neck, the hollow of her clavicle as he pops open the buttons of her shirt (his phone rings in his back pocket, and he throws it to the floor). "You're gorgeous," he murmurs against her chest; "Evil succubus, but _ damn _ if you're not beautiful."

She wraps her legs around his hips as a response, locking them together; he grinds down, and she whimpers, and _ God, she's so sexy-- _

The doorbell rings, and they both freeze. The heavy haze dies down, and Momiji remembers: _ That was Momo's ringtone. _ He jumps off the bed, grabbing his phone--three missed calls from Sohma Momo--and then rushes to the door.

_ "Mutti?" _ he says, seeing his mother in the hallway, with Momo peering up at him from her feet. "What are you--it's so late--"

"I'm sorry," she says, and she does genuinely look apologetic. "I did call, though, with Momo's phone."

"I didn't see it--_ Mutti, _ what's going on?"

"I need you to take care of Momo for a while," she says. "I'm going back to Germany."

"What? Why?"

"The recent...revelations have lead me to see your father in a different light. Myself, as well. I want a chance to remember who I am, who I used to be before...all this."

"Before our family, you mean," Momiji says, and there's an icy rage settling in his bones. _ Typical, _ he thinks angrily, _ One thing goes wrong and she abandons everything, only thinks about herself. _

She pauses, but continues as if he hadn't said anything. "I don't trust your father enough to take care of her anymore. You're the only one I can trust with her, I've seen the way you look at her, I know you love her as much as I do."

Momiji crouches down and opens his arms, and Momo rushes forward to cling to him, in the desperate, quiet way little girls do when they're scared and confused. (He remembers the time when Kisa was little, and they had heard wolves howling in the distance; she'd clung to Haru then, in much the same way.) He picks her up and stares at _ Mutti, _ tired. "You're wrong," he says quietly. "I love her far more than you ever could, because I would never leave her. You're just repeating the same mistake you did eighteen years ago, when you chose to forget about me."

"You'll take care of her, then?"

He kisses Momo's forehead. "Of course I will. Just don't expect her to ever want you to come back."

She looks annoyed, but she leaves, and Momiji closes the door behind her.

"You okay, Momo?" he asks quietly. "Did you eat dinner already?"

"I ate with Mama," she says in a small voice. "Why did Mama leave?"

"I don't know," he says, "But I'll take care of you, okay?"

"Okay," she agrees, her eyes watery, and he holds her close.

He hears the click of his bedroom door suddenly, and he looks up to see Kimi standing in the hall, staring at him, hastily wrapping her shirt back over her chest.

"Shit," he swears, because he forgot she was there. "Kimi, this is--"

"Don't," she says, her eyes wide in...fear? Is that what that is? "I'm gonna go," she says, and she brushes past him to slide her shoes on.

"Kimi, I'm sorry--" he tries to say, but she slams the door behind her, and he can't shake the feeling that he's done something incredibly wrong.


	2. Build That Wall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey!! i did it. just so yall know, i updated the tags for this one to include "non consensual voyeurism," but the "no actual sex" rule still applies, and it's not *that* bad of a scene. if you want more--spoilers!--details, check the bottom notes, i wrote more about it there! :)

_ He has a kid, _ is the only thing Kimi can think as she stares the evidence in the face. She looks just like him, there's no way it's not his, and he's holding her so gently, so carefully, lovingly. The door behind her clicks shut and he looks up, sees her: he's surprised. He forgot about her, when he picked up his kid-- _ No, it was before that, it was when he was at the door talking to--who? The girl's mother? No, he forgot when he picked up the phone. _

She has to go. She has to run, to escape, before she gets trapped, sucked in, because she's not welcome here, it's not her place, she doesn't want to deal with this, she can't--

_ (I'm your new mommy!  _ The hated voice, the hated woman sounds too much like herself.)

He says something, she can barely hear him; she cuts him off, leaves, slams the door in his face and then frantically rebuttons her shirt. She almost--

_ No, we're done thinking about that, _ she decides, steeling her resolve. It's late. The buses won't be running anymore, it's too dark to walk home alone, and she doesn't have a car. She needs to call someone, get someone to pick her up. Who would be up so late, who would care enough, who owes her something--

She grins, and dials a number. "Manabe~" she trills when he, as expected, picks up. "I  _ need _ you!"

_ "Is this a booty call?" _ Kakeru laughs.  _ "I'm in a very committed relationship with Komaki, you know, and also secretly gay so you can't use your feminine wiles to seduce me." _

"How committed can you be if you're gay?"

_ "I'm straight only for her, it's all very romantic, yadda yadda yadda, what do you want?" _

Kimi giggles. "I'm calling in my favor, I need a ride."

_ "Since when do I owe you anything?" _

"The noodle incident," Kimi says promptly, and smiles as she imagines his immediate wince.

_ "Fine, fine, where the hell are you?" _

"I'll text you. See you in a few!"

"So," he says a few minutes later when she jumps in the passenger seat. "We gonna talk about why you needed me to pick you up from the German kid's apartment in the middle of the night?"

"Shut the fuck up and drive, Manabe," Kimi says coolly, picking at her nails.

"Sure, sure," he sighs, pulling out into the road. "Hey, I've definitely paid you back by now, right? You can't hold the noodle thing over me forever."

"Can't I?"

Kakeru side eyes her. "Wow, you're  _ pissy _ tonight. What the hell happened?"

"If you don't stop asking I'm telling Yun about the noodles."

Kakeru mimes zipping up his lips and locking them. They don't talk for the rest of the drive.

When they finally pull up to her own apartment building, however, he stops her just as she's leaving. "Hey," he says, catching her wrist. "You know you can like, talk to us, right? We're your friends, we can help you out if you need us."

She considers it, seriously-- _ What if I let him in? Broke down on the couch upstairs, cried my heart out, ate ice cream, told him every single dirty detail about my past that still comes back to haunt me today? _ It could be cathartic, empowering, helpful, but then he would Know. Every time he would look at her after that, he'd be analyzing, connecting the dots:  _ this _ reaction ties back to  _ that _ insecurity;  _ that  _ one ties back to  _ this  _ family drama. He'd  _ have _ something on her, and she can't stand that, so instead:

"Are you really so desperate for attention that you wanna hear me gossip, Manabe?" she says with a teasing, relaxed grin. "Hate to break it to you, but I'm just not that interested."

He flinches, and lets go, as annoyed by her words as she'd hoped he would be. "Whatever. See you around, bitch."

She flips him off cheerily as he drives away.

  
  
  


That night, she dreams:

_ She's a little girl again, sitting in her father's lap. "You," he says, poking her cheek and making her blush, "Are the cutest, most beautiful little girl in the world. You're going to grow up to be a heartbreaker one day, aren't you?" _

_ She giggles, and it's warm, and then the world shifts: it's dark, but there's a light on at the end of the hall, and the silhouette of a woman she barely knows has it's back to her. "Mommy?" she asks, and the woman barely turns her head. _

_ "I'm sorry, Kimi," she laughs, and doesn't sound sorry at all. "Your father is despicable." _

_ "Where are you going?" Suddenly she's at the woman's feet, tugging at her skirt, crying, "Don't go!" _

_ The woman bends down and strokes her hair, still smiling. "Give them hell for me, Kimi." _

  
  
  


At the office in the morning, Kimi seeks out Nao. "Nao~" she whines, "I need your help!"

Nao glares at her. "Why would I do anything for you ever?"

"Remember that time with Motoko?"

"Hm. What are you asking for?"

"I need you to be my fake boyfriend in front of our boss."

Nao grimaces. "Ew, no, that's way more than what you did for me, I'm out."

"I got you her number!"

"Yeah, but she never called me back! Besides, what do you even need a fake boyfriend for?"

Kimi shrugs. "I just wanna get him off my back, he's boring me." (That's not it.)

"Don't you usually tell guys that you'd rather be single than with them in this situation?"

"Just because I used that line on you--"

"You've never used that line on me--"

"Doesn't mean I use it on  _ every _ boring guy, Nao," Kimi reprimands, ignoring him. "Come on, please? I'll provoke Motoko into calling you back if you do."

Nao narrows his eyes. "Define provoke."

Kimi spots blonde hair through the glass doors and flinches. "Nao he's coming, come on!" As the door opens, she grabs Nao's tie from across the front desk and pulls him into a kiss. After a long moment, she pulls away and turns, satisfied, to see Momiji staring at them. "Oh, hey boss!" she says cheerfully, smirking. "I'll be up in a minute, I'm just catching up with Nao."

"--Sure, okay, yeah," he says, sounding hollow, heart-broken. (How dare he.) "I'll see you up there, then."

A flash of color catches her eye, and suddenly her gaze is fixed on a bouquet of roses hanging limply by his side. "Who did you get flowers for?" she asks like a woman possessed.

"No one," he says with a fake smile. "I just thought they would look nice."

He leaves, and Nao winces. "Poor guy. I hope he finds someone better than you."

Kimi glares. "Aren't you supposed to be on  _ my _ side? We were friends first!"

"He brought you flowers!" Nao exclaims. "He's a sweetheart, and you're evil. You better follow through with the Motoko thing now, by the way."

"Evil women don't hold up their side of an agreement," Kimi says spitefully, and she walks off towards the office.

  
  
  


_ Tick, tock. Tick, tock. _

They sit facing each other, behind their desks and computers, not looking at each other. The vase of roses sits on Momiji's desk like a harsh reminder, a bright red stain on their relationship. Neither of them says a word, and the air grows thicker and thicker between them.

Momiji seems to gather up his resolve. "Kimi, I'm sorry--"

"Look through the email I sent you, you have work to do," she cuts him off, not even glancing up at him.

He blinks. "Work?"

"Yeah, we're way behind. Read up on the history of the company and its deals, it's the kind of thing you'll be expected to know when you take over."

"But, earlier, you said--"

"Did you really think I meant there would  _ never _ be any work to do? This is a job, not playtime," Kimi snorts.

She allows herself one glance at Momiji: he looks confused, guilty, nervous. "Shit," he mutters under his breath, and he starts clicking through his computer frantically.

_ Tick, tock. Click click click. _

His face screws up in confusion again at some point. "Kimi, can you help me with this--"

"I'm busy," she says, starting up a game of solitaire on her computer.

"...Right," he says.

_ Tick, tock. Tick, tock.  _ ** _Tick--_ **

  
  
  


_ "Daddy," she asks, tugging at the bottom of his shirt, "Why did Mommy leave?" _

_ "I don't know, sweetheart," he says, picking her up to hold her close. "But we're going to be okay, alright? You and me, together forever. Can you be tough for me?" _

_ Kimi smiles. "Yeah!" (Maybe it's for the best. She'd always liked Daddy better anyway.) _

_ There's a tug, a disorienting pull, and suddenly she's in someone else's arms, someone she's never met, someone  _ ** _wrong._ ** _ "Hello there, Kimi!" she says in her face, too loud. "Aren't  _ you _ just the cutest little thing?" _

_ "Who are you?" (She struggles, tries to get away, to get back to Daddy--) _

_ "I'm your new Mommy!" she says in a sickly sweet voice. "Isn't that fun?" _

_ Wrong wrong wrong wrong  _ ** _wrong._ ** _ She's too close, too loud; she's ugly, insane, evil. Mommy  _ left,  _ why is this woman here trying to take her place, she was finally gone-- _

_ "Daddy, she's lying!" Kimi yells, triumphantly. "You can't be my new Mommy, Daddy said it would just be the two of us now!" _

_ The woman's face screws up in anger. "Why, I  _ never--"

_ Daddy rests a hand on her shoulder. "I can handle this," he says, smiling at her. "Kimi, of course we'll still be together forever. We can still do that with your new Mommy here, don't you think?" _

_ Kimi stares at him, and everything she thought she knew falls apart in front of her eyes, as the truth breaks through the window. Kimi isn't his favorite, and she never will be; he just wants to control her, keep her happy so she doesn't cause any trouble. He prefers this woman, for now--who knows how long that will last. He's hoping she'll take this easily, that she won't cause unnecessary problems for him. _

_ ("Give them hell," echoes in her head.) _

_ "I'm still your favorite, right Daddy?" she asks, and he smiles and lies through his teeth. _

_ "Of course, sweetie," he says, and the woman looks furious. _

  
  
  


"Hey, we still going up to visit the rest of the old student council at their college this weekend?" Nao asks one day, at yet another awkward and quiet lunch with Kimi and Momiji.

Kimi shrugs. "I was planning on it. You're going too, then?"

"I guess," Nao says. "There's supposed to be a fair up there, could be fun."

"It's a date, then!" Kimi exclaims, blowing him a kiss.

"Right, yes, because we are totally dating and in love," Nao agrees robotically. Kimi glares at him. "Hey, Momiji, d'you wanna come up with us? You haven't seen your cousin in a while, right?"

Momiji looks up from his food for the first time in days. "Sure," he says, a little incredulously, happily. "It'd be nice to see Yuki and Machi again."

"Perfect!" Nao says, uncharacteristically happy. "It'll be great to have you around."

Kimi narrows her eyes, and confronts him about it later. "What are you doing?" she hisses.

He stares back at her coolly. "I'm sick of you guys making everything awkward, you needed a push. I'm just giving you an opportunity to talk."

"I don't want to--"

"So what? Not everything's about what  _ you _ want, you know."

She fumes, but still ends up at Kaibara college with the two of them.  _ Whatever, _ she thinks,  _ it's still fine. As long as I cling to Nao the whole time, Momiji won't bother me. _

Nao squints, looking around at the people around them. "Oh, shit," he says suddenly, "Is that Motoko? Get off me, Kimi, I'm gonna go say hi to her."

"What?" Kimi protests. "Nao, you're  _ my _ date!"

Nao glances at Momiji, then sticks his tongue out at her. "Yeah, but it's definitely not worth it now. You didn't even keep up your end of the deal, Motoko never called me."

_ "Nao--!" _ But he's leaving already.

Momiji watches him go, then turns to Kimi with an amused look. "That's unfortunate. He  _ was _ a fake date, then?"

"...Still a better date than  _ your _ sorry ass," she grumbles.

He flinches, but then something in his eyes hardens. "Kimi, wait," he says, grabbing her wrist. "Can we please talk about this? I don't know what I did wrong, and it's killing me."

Kimi sighs, picks at her nails. "I just got bored, okay? Besides, even  _ I _ have my limits, I wasn't gonna fuck you when baby momma was around."

Momiji suddenly looks more disgusted than she's ever seen anybody look, ever. "You think--Kimi, Momo--the kid--is my  _ sister! _ It was my  _ Mom _ at the door!"

Kimi pauses. She hadn't considered that. But still, "Fine, whatever, I also wasn't gonna fuck you with  _ momma _ at the door. Can you just get over yourself already? We're done."

"But why?" he asks, pleading. "What did I do wrong? Tell me, so I can fix it. Please."

She looks at him, and laughs. "As if I haven't heard that before," she says with a grin. "Really, if you're going to beg, at least make it more interesting."

"I mean, I'm not gonna strip in front of all these people," he fires back, and it startles a laugh out of her. He grins like a madman when he hears it. "I'm not giving up on you, Toudou Kimi," he says, stepping a little closer. He taps the side of her head lightly. "There's something in here, something I still haven't quite figured out yet. But I'm going to, just you wait. Okay?"

And he's tall, so very tall, and his self-satisfied little smile does funny things to her heart, and there's a determination in his eyes that she's only ever seen directed at other women, the kind of determination that she always had so much fun breaking, tearing men away from happy relationships, just to prove she could. But now he's looking at  _ her _ with those eyes, and it's overwhelming, frightening; she wants to run, to hide, to fight, but she's not entirely sure she can run anywhere except into his arms.

"Fine," she says with a bravado she doesn't feel. "Good luck."

  
  
  


_ "Aren't you concerned? She's out late every night doing who-knows-what, with boys who want to do... _ things _ with her." _

_ He barely looks up from the paper. "I trust my daughter. You're fine, aren't you Kimi?" _

_ Kimi smiles. "Of course, Daddy!" _

_ The woman glares. "She's playing you, can't you see that? Lying so you don't worry, but look what she's doing behind your back! She's going to get pregnant, we have to do something about this!" _

_ Kimi stands and wraps her arms around her father from behind, dropping her chin on his forehead. "I love you, Daddy!" she says, making direct eye contact with the woman. "I'll be safe, I promise." _

_ "Love you too, sweetheart," he says, smiling. "See? She's fine." _

_ "Daddy loves Kimi the most, right?" _

_ "Sure, sweetie, of course," he says, and Kimi grins madly at the woman. _

_ Anger glares back. _

  
  
  


**Come have lunch with me today?** pops up on Kimi's phone, so she meets her father at a local ramen shop.

"Daddy!" she says cheerfully when she sees him, and he stands to hug her when she approaches.

"Hey, Sweetie," he says warmly, "How's it hanging?"

"Ugh, you wouldn't  _ believe _ the trouble I've been having," she complains. "My boss keeps trying to date me, so annoying."

He raises an eyebrow. "Do you need me to come out there and give him a talking-to?"

She snorts. "No, he's fine, he's a sweetheart, I'm just not interested."

"Well," he says with a feigned casualness that can only spell trouble. "If it ever gets to be a problem, you can always come work for me. You know I'll take care of you."

_ Sure, _ she thinks,  _ and you'll take the chance to show off all the women you're fucking there, too. _ But she smiles, and says, "I can handle it, Daddy. Besides, I wanna  _ earn _ my job, not have it handed to me by my dad." It's a bullshit argument by anyone who knows her, but one that sits well with him.

"Of course," he says, his voice now flavored with pride. "I'm proud of you for doing this the hard way, Sweetie. I know you haven't always..."

Kimi ducks her head, blushes, plays the bashful daughter.  _ "Dad, _ you're embarrassing me!"

He chuckles and reaches across to ruffle her hair. (It's nice.)

  
  
  


Momiji stretches, cracks his knuckles for the third time this morning, and Kimi can't help but glance over at him.  _ He wants to say something, _ she notes, smiling to herself a little.  _ He's so obvious. _

He notices her staring and winks. "Like what you see?"

She rolls her eyes. "No, I have standards."

"Ouch," he laughs, and picks up some papers off his desk. "Hey, can you help me with this? I don't really understand why..."

"Is that why you've looked like a lost puppy all day? Couldn't figure this out?"

"Oh, shut up, tell me what this means," he says, walking over to her desk and hovering over her shoulder to get her opinion. (He smells like vanilla.)

She snorts when she sees what he was looking over. "Really? What about this doesn't make sense--"

The door opens, and Kimi sees red.

"Hello, sweetie!" her stepmother says, posing in the doorframe. "I just wanted to see how you were doing with your new boss and all, check up on you!" She raises an eyebrow at the two of them, Momiji still too close to just be a friend.

"Ah, hello," Momiji says, bowing. "I'm Sohma Momiji, and you are...?"

"Oh, just darling Kimi's dear old mother," she laughs, pretending to be flattered. "It seems you two are getting along  _ quite _ well, I'm happy for you."

"She's not my mother," Kimi snaps. "Get the hell out."

The hated woman smiles a sickly smile. "You know, you really  _ do _ take after your father. Very... _ charismatic, _ shall we say?"

Momiji tenses, automatically moves to stand between them. "Actually, we have a lot of work to do, it was lovely to meet you, but--"

Kimi jumps up and slams her palm on the desk. "Are you fucking kidding me?! Get out! Mind your own business! Keep your nose out of things that don't concern you for once in your life!"

"But Kimi," she says, not even flinching. "I'm your mother. Of course your life concerns me!"

"You're not--"

"Your father  _ chose _ me a long time ago, sweetheart," she says with a taunting grin. "Over you, at least, if not over anyone else. So suck it up and live with it!"

"Ma'am, please don't--" Momiji tries to say, but Kimi shoves past him, shoves past both of them, runs out the door, eyes wet and heart pounding, ears ringing.

  
  
  


_ She's in her room, for once, much earlier than normal, when something loud and heavy thunks against her door, and moans. _

_ "Oh," the woman moans through the door. "Tell me you love me." _

_ "I love you," her father growls back. "More than anything." _

_ "More than the women at your office?" _

_ "Of course." _

_ "More than  _ her _ mother?" _

_ "I chose you over her, didn't I?" _

_ "More than your daughter?" _

_ "Easily. Come on, we shouldn't do this here." _

_ "She won't be back yet," the woman protests, but she goes along anyway. Probably because she already knows. _

_ Because, in the morning, she's satisfied, pleased, sated; she makes eye contact with Kimi, and winks. "I win," the wink says. Kimi picks at her cereal. _

  
  
  


Kimi ends up on the roof, perched on the concrete barrier at the edge, her feet dangling off the edge and her tears falling on pedestrians below. She swings her feet, and one of her shoes slips off her heel, until it's just dangling by the toes. She wonders how much it would hurt to have a shoe fall on your head from the top of a skyscraper, and lets her shoe slip a bit further--

Warm, strong arms wrap around her chest from behind, and Momiji's head rests on her shoulder. "Don't lose a shoe," he says, and she can  _ feel _ his voice more than just hear it.

(He feels safe, he feels right, he feels like what she'd always thought home  _ should _ be--)

"You know," she says carefully, "I want to drop it  _ more _ now, just because you told me not to."

He chuckles, and it almost feels like she's laughing too; her back has never felt so complete, so whole. "Fine, then," he whispers. "Throw away your shoe, I hate it. Never wanna see it again."

"Do you think I can hit a pedestrian?" she wonders.

His grip tightens, and suddenly her heart is racing. "Kimi," he says, and his voice sounds broken, scared. "Come home."

_ What does he mean by that? _ she wonders.  _ Back to the office, where  _ she's _ still waiting? Back to his apartment, where his sister lives? Back to  _ my  _ apartment? _ She turns her head to the side slightly, so she can catch a slight glimpse of his face; his eyes are screwed shut, his jaw is set, his cheeks are flushed.  _ Maybe he just means off of this roof, _ she thinks.

"Okay," she says, and he helps her to her feet.

  
  
  


"Let me walk you home," Momiji says at the end of the day, and Kimi rolls her eyes.

"Don't you need to take care of your sister?"

"I called Tohru earlier, she'll take Momo," he says, waving off the idea.  _ I want to make sure you're okay, _ he doesn't say.

She purses her lips. "I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own."  _ I'm fine. _

"Fine, fine," he says, then grins. "Would you let me have the  _ honor _ of walking you home?"  _ You don't have to admit anything. _

"Fine," Kimi decides, "But you're making me dinner."  _ There's nothing to admit. _

"Okay," he agrees easily, smirking.  _ Sure, sure. _

So they end up in her kitchen, him standing at the stove, stirring hot pot; her perched on the counter, watching him carefully. "I don't think I've ever actually had a boy cook for me before," she admits eventually.

"That's good," he says easily. "That means your standards are lower, you won't compare me to anyone."

"I bet you're a terrible cook. I hate it already, I've decided."

"Unfair!" he teases, flicking sauce at her face with a shit-eating grin. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it!"

She grins, swipes the sauce off her face and tries it.  _ It's good, _ she thinks. "Terrible," she says, sticking her tongue out at him.

He sighs. "I guess I'm not a chef. Prettier, though."

"Of course you're pretty, you're a Sohma. Pretty Sohma boys are a dime a dozen."

"Come on, we're at least a dollar a dozen."

"Is that any better?"

"Probably?" She snorts, and he grins, pleased. "You're happier," he notes.

She sobers and picks at her nails. "Am I?" she asks cryptically.

He just grins, though. "You  _ are. _ I'm glad."

"Why, you have a crush on me or something?" she says. She knows he does; it's been obvious for ages.  _ I'd like to see him try to deny it, _ she thinks with a huff of a laugh.

"Well, yeah," he says instead, leaning his hand on the counter next to her. "You like me back, too."

Huge, soft, yellow brown eyes meet hers and she realizes that he  _ knows. _ He's figured her out, he's cracked her code, he's seen what makes her  _ Kimi _ and he  _ still likes it. _ She suddenly feels naked, more exposed than she's ever been; she wants to run, but she can't look away. It's scary, terrifying, but... She'd never back down from a fight.

"Well, yeah," she says back, staring back at him unflinching, and he smiles softly.

"Good," he says, presses a quick, soft kiss to her cheek, and then pulls away. "How do you want this meat cooked?"

Her mind runs in a million different directions-- _ Oh. The food. _ "Medium is fine."

"Sure, sure," he says, and winks.

_ (Perceptive asshole.) _

  
  
  


She can't sleep. Restlessly, she tosses and turns, tries to find a more comfortable position to distract herself from the fact that he's  _ out there. _

_ "It's late," she'd said. _

_ "Do you want me to go?" _

_ "...You can sleep on the couch." _

_ Maybe, _ she realizes now,  _ it would have been less distracting to just have him in here to begin with. _ She sighs and sits up, rubs at her eyes.  _ Maybe I'll just go check on him, _ she decides, and that's how she ends up kneeling on the ground next to the couch, watching him sleep peacefully.

He looks more boyish in his sleep, more like the childish kid she vaguely remembers seeing in the halls, before he hit his growth spurt and became the talk of the school. His ears are pierced, his hands are soft, his lips... Is that lip gloss? She wouldn't put it past him. He's strong--probably not as strong as his cousins, but he puts on bulk better, with his more European build. And he's--

He's smiling at her, though his eyes (with the beautiful, blonde, soft lashes) are still closed.

_ So you're awake, then, _ she realizes, huffing a laugh.  _ Well, if this is the game you want to play... _

She traces a line from his shoulder to his far hip with her finger and coyly plays with the fabric bunched at the edge of his shirt. When she touches the bare skin of his side, his breath hitches, and she grins, splaying her whole hand against his side.

A hand clamps down on her own side, and he's wide awake and grinning, and then he's pulling her on top of him and they're kissing, and she's not running away anymore.

  
  
  


Kakeru looks critically at Kimi from across the table, where he's awkwardly wedged himself between Yuki and Machi. "They're dating now? You're sure?" Kimi flips him off and leans more heavily against Momiji, who smiles at her.

_ "Yes," _ Nao says, exasperated. "They've been insufferable, it's awful."

Kakeru frowns. "No, no, I believe they're dating, but... You're trying to tell me they  _ weren't _ dating a week ago?"

Nao stares incredulously. "Do you have  _ eyes? _ Kimi wasn't trying to get me to play fake boyfriend for  _ your _ benefit."

"Kakeru, let me out, I gotta go to the bathroom," Machi says from where she's stuck between him and the wall.

"I believe Nao," Yuki says, after some shuffling of seats. "Good for you, Momiji."

Momiji beams. "Thanks Yuki!"

Kimi sends a text to Machi ( **Operation: Cuddle Time! is a go!** ) and elbows Nao in the side "discreetly." He glares, but casually slumps in his seat and kicks his feet up into Machi's abandoned seat.

"I just can't believe you're actually  _ dating _ someone. Did he even have a girlfriend before you went for him?" Kakeru says, leaning in to stare at Kimi.

"I can't believe you're still trying to pretend you're not gay," she says back, in a sickly sweet tone. "No one here would mind, it's  _ okay, _ Manabe."

He scowls. "Okay, I was  _ joking _ when I told you that, for one, and having a sense of style doesn't mean I'm gay!"

"It's not so much  _ having _ a style," Nao drawls, "As  _ what _ that style  _ is. _ Too much jewelry."

Kakeru turns to Yuki for support. "Haru wears  _ twice _ as much as I do."

"Haru is goth," Yuki says as a counterpoint. "And bi, so I'm not sure what you're trying to prove--"

"Yuki, scooch," Machi says, having returned from the bathroom.

"Yeah, sure," Yuki says, turning to Kakeru. "Kakeru, scooch--"

"No!" Kakeru says, frowning. "Machi, come sit over here, Yuki get up, we'll let her in--"

"Stealing my footrest? Rude," Nao grumbles. He waves his foot at Kakeru.

"Shut up Nao. Yuki, I'm not scooching."

"I'm not getting up," Yuki counters, grinning.

"Whatever," Machi says, and sits on his lap.

The horrified look on Kakeru's face, combined with the incredibly pleased look on Yuki's, throws them all into fits of laughter, and Kimi leans more heavily into Momiji's side.  _ This is family, _ she realizes.  _ Home. _

  
_ It's nice, _ she thinks, and when she glances up at Momiji, he's smiling back at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SPOILER TAG WARNING: kimi has a flashback scene where she can hear her dad and step mom making out and clearly about to have sex against her bedroom door. her step mom knows she is there, and is intentionally doing this so she can get kimi's dad to say he loves kimi's step mom more than kimi. if you want to skip this scene, it's the italicized chunk between "Kimi shoves past him, shoves past both of them, runs out the door, eyes wet and heart pounding, ears ringing." and "Kimi ends up on the roof."
> 
> \----
> 
> thank yall so much for reading!! i have the discord to thank for this, especially thewinterose (for encouraging me with her absolute love of momimi being big flirts) and manyadere (for helping me figure out how to tag this fic better). i love yall and i will see yall next time <3

**Author's Note:**

> if you liked this, please let me know! i'd love comments, kudos, bookmarks, etc., it really helps motivate me to keep writing. you can also say hi to me on tumblr! i'm @r3dmi1es there (link: https://r3dmi1es.tumblr.com/). also, feel free to share this on tumblr if you liked it! i will be making a post about it that you can reblog, and you can also tag me if you want to make your own post.
> 
> work title and chapter titles are based off the song titles in the supergiant game bastion, because i thought it suited them. im planning on writing a second chapter for this (i just havent written it yet), so stay tuned!
> 
> special thanks to the discord group of lovely fruits basket writers for letting me share my writing with them! it helped a lot with motivation and inspiration <3


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